Chapter 1, The Creature
It started with a noise. A constant, unwavering noise that seemed to freeze the air around it, causing a chilling fear to seize your heart. The misshapen creature that was causing this noise glanced down at a basin of water at its feet. “Today will be fun,” it said out loud, smiling as it did so. There was more than a hint of insanity in its voice.
“What is that ghastly noise?” Mark asked as they came over the top of a hill.
“I’m not sure,” Will replied, “but we should stay alert. More so than usual, that is.”
“Agreed,” Mark answered as he and Will strung their bows and scanned the area below them for any anomalies. With a quick nod to each other to show they had not seen anything out of the ordinary, they urged their horses forward.
As the two companions made their way down the hill, the noise seemed to grow louder. Upon noticing this, Mark glanced quickly at Will, hoping to see a reassuring expression on his face. He was even more unnerved then before, however, when he saw fear in his companion’s eyes. This was a very bad sign, Mark new, because the 36 year old hunter rarely showed fear. This made Mark afraid. Very afraid.
Will, seeing the glance from his companion, cursed under his breath. He knew his face had betrayed the fear he felt, despite his efforts to conceal it. The fear, however, was not caused by the noise or what was causing it. Atleast, not in the way you would be led to believe. The fear, if that is indeed the proper word for it, was due to the fact that Will knew Mark's life would never quite be the same after that day.
The two friends rode together in silence for a few minutes, each contemplating the situation before them. Finally, as the noise reached a level of volume that was nearly unbearable, Will started to talk.
“There’s something you ought to know about this noise.”
“There is?” Mark replied a split second later.
“Yes, now hush so I can continue.” Will scolded as he gave Mark a stern look. “This conversation will have more impact on your life than any other.”
“Really? What about my school teachings?” Mark asked, realizing his mistake a second later. “Sorry,” he apologized, “continue, please.”
“As I was saying, there is something very important about this noise. It comes from a creature who possesses certain… abilities.”
“Abilities? Do you mean magic?” Mark asked in a voice that clearly betrayed his excitement.
Will sighed and reluctantly answered. “Some consider it magic, yes. Regardless, these abilities are not to be taken lightly. This creature can take your life as easily as I can take a breath.”
Seeing the look of terror on the young boy’s face, Will realized he had made it seem as if they were riding to their deaths. “Wipe that look from your face, boy. It would have a much harder time if it tried to kill me. I do have a few tricks up my sleeve, you know.” He was relieved to see the color come back into the boy’s face, and decided he could handle hearing the rest of what he knew about these creatures.
“This creatures name is one that you haven’t likely heard. They try to keep these creatures out of your oh so important school teachings,” he said with just a hint of a smile. “Not that you kids would benefit from learning about the halkara much anyway. There are few enough of them in this world to be disregarded as simple myth or legend, but this unbearable noise that we hear now is proof enough of their existence. This noise is one of two things the halkara use to instill fear into any who dare to challenge them. The second of these two things is their eyes. If you look into their eyes while hearing the noise, your body will stop obeying you, leaving you helpless as they feast on you.”
Mark, curious as always, was filled to the brim with questions. Barely a second had passed before Mark unleashed a volley of questions. “Why don’t they just kill you? Wouldn’t that be safer for them?”
Will, for the second time in the space of a few minutes, sighed. “If you had let me finish, you would have learned that the halkara are small creatures, often measuring less than 48 inches tall,” he told Mark.
“Surely they would have some way to kill you, though?”
“Yes, they have many different ways to kill you, but there is one thing that stops them from doing so; they like their meals alive,” Will said in a cold, emotionless voice. “It is said that fear gives human flesh a particular taste. Apparently the halkara have come to enjoy, and perhaps crave, this taste. Whatever the reason, they now only eat human flesh that has been paralyzed by fear.”
Will watched the wildlife around them begin to die as they entered the outskirts of Kalnar, waiting patiently for a reply from his apprentice. He had always been intrigued by the way vegetation changed as they entered different lands, especially in areas such as this where the land quickly changes from being lush and full of life to being barren and desolate. Soon, Will found his mind drifting to his hut back in Helsher, surrounded by the trees and wildlife that he had grown so fond of. This day dream didn’t last long,though, for Mark had yet another question to ask.
“Will… What do you plan on doing once we reach this Halkara?” Mark asked hesitantly, not sure if he really wanted to hear the answer.
“Well that’s an easy one, Mark. We kill it.”
Chapter 2, Swords and Men
The two swordsmen had just finished packing the last of their supplies into their bags when a noise broke into the morning silence.
“Another one?” Steve remarked to Brian as he eased his blade in its scabbard, a look of annoyance clear on his face.
“It appears that way,” Brian replied. “These things are really becoming a nuisance. I’m debating whether or not we should even bother killing this one.”
“You know we don’t have a choice in things like this, Brian. Although it’s not as if this halkara is going to harm anyone all the way out here in Kalnar. Only hunters and swordsman like us come out here, and both are more than capable of dispatching these brutes,” Steve replied.
“True, but I don’t think Aldur would agree with us, and I’d much rather face an insane halkara than an angry Aldur,” Brian said, chuckling as he did.
“Definitely,” Steve agreed as he urged his horse to pick up speed. “Atleast this awful screeching will be over once we kill it. It’s damned near impossible to get a good nights sleep with these things screaming all the time.”
“Let’s get on with it then, shall we?” Brian said as he tapped his horse twice, signaling it to break into a gallop. “The sooner we kill this thing, the better.”
Chapter 3, The Fight
“K- kill it?” Mark stammered.
“Yes, kill it. What else would we do, have a picnic with it?” Will replied, chuckling as he did so.
“I suppose your right,” Mark reluctantly answered. “But how do you plan on killing it before it paralyzes you?”
“I’d have to look in its eyes for it to paralyze me, and I know better than that. As for how I plan on killing it, you’ll be able to see that for yourself in a minute,” Will said. Seeing the puzzled expression on the young boy’s face, he added, “The Halkara is right in front of us.”
Upon hearing this, Mark turned quickly in the direction Will had indicated. What he saw there was a much more gruesome sight than he been expecting. 80 feet away a dark figured stood laughing. Even from this distance, Mark could clearly see the bloodstained skulls that adorned the spikes on its shoulders. The face was a twisted mass of scars and dead flesh and its teeth were stained red from its many victims. There wasn’t a single tooth that hadn’t rotted in place, and many had fallen out. There lay a crude metal basin at its feet.
“Th- that’s a Halkara?” Mark stammered. “It looks like something from out of a nightmare!”
Before Will had a chance to reply, the screaming stopped and the Halkara began to speak.
“Two travelers I see. Yes, I see I see. I have a choice for thee,” It said in a surprisingly high pitched voice. “A riddle to try, or time to die?”
“Please take the riddle,” Mark pleaded to Will.
“Neither,” Will answered, ignoring Mark’s pleading.
“Not a choice, not a choice. Time to die for thee,” the Halkara replied as it advanced towards the two travelers at a much faster pace than its build suggested should be possible. The screaming quickly started again.
“Wait here, Mark. If the creature comes close, shoot it. And make sure your eyes don’t wander,” Will said as he pulled an arrow out of his quiver and quickly knocked it onto his bow. “I’ll deal with this beast.”
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On the other side of the Halkara, Brian and Steve watched with interest as the hunter rode to confront it.
“Think we should help him?” Brian asked as he quickly moved his hand to his sword, ready to pull it out in case the answer was yes.
“We will if he starts to have trouble, but I doubt that will be the case. There is something different about that hunter,” Steve replied, his eyes never leaving the two figures who were quickly coming together. “He seems to have a certain.. power about him.”
Soon, the gap between Will and the Halkara had shrunk to a size of 30 feet. Will, figuring that he was close enough, let an arrow loose and hit the Halkara directly in the center of its forehead. Without even looking to see where his previous arrow had hit, he shot another. Again, the accuracy of the shot was remarkable, nearly splitting the previous arrow in half.
After the second shot, the Halkara crumpled to the ground. A thick stream of its jet black blood oozed from its forehead and one of the skulls on its shoulders was smashed into pieces. It’s eyes soon faded to black pits as the last of its life slipped away.
“Holy ****,” remarked both of the warriors at the same time.
“He dropped that Halkara in little over a second,” Steve added.
“That was the best shooting I have ever seen,” Brian agreed. “Seems like you were right. That’s no ordinary hunter.”
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